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Contest Details > In the spirit of supporting design innovation, & creativity, ideacious and our co-sponsors are excited to announce the $20 000 FREEform Competition. Too often, the challenge of bringing a product to market stands between a designer’s vision and reality. For this reason ideacious was created as a platform to allow designers to market directly to consumers, crowd funding their projects and managing the logistics of bringing a product to market. The FREEform competition not only gives you the chance to win cash and cool prizes - it also gives every submission the opportunity to put your idea into production (and making you profits) with no additonal work or cost you! Submit your best sketch, finished design, or achieve a presales goal on ideacious and you could win up to $20,000 in cash and prizes. The Brief > Summary The FREEform competition earns its name by allowing you the freedom (FREE) to design any object (form) for production – anything you want – no clients - no opinions (other than your own). The FREEform competition begins - as most great ideas do - with the iconic napkin sketch (Tier 1), followed by a properly designed product submitted into the ideacious.com platform - ready for manufacturing (Tier 2). Now it gets interesting; all competition submissions continue on in an attempt to find a group of early buyers to preorder a preestablished number of units required to put the product into production (Tier 3). So at the end of the day, you’re looking to put this product idea into production using the ideacious platform. It’s a great idea to get as familiar with how ideacious works to increase your chances of success – certain product types are going to sell better than others, and price point is always a consideration. The clever monkey is going to understand the market... er... banana. Here are some things to consider: - Your product MUST have a retail price greater than $99. - You can package multiples of your product to achieve a retail price that is greater than $99. Ie - If your product is a coat hanger, with a market retail price of $35, you would have to sell them in batches of 3 to be eligable for the competition. - Your product must have a complete manufacturing cost (including ammortized tooling and packaging) that’s less than 45% of the retail sales price. - Your product will have to presell a minimum of 500 units to win Tier 3. If your product requires more units sold to ammortize any tooling or set up costs, your presale goal will be higher than some of the other competition participants. ideacious will identify what your product’s presale goal is before Tier 3 begins. - Even if your product requires more than 500 presales, you still have to presell the full amount in the set amount of time (Apr 15/12 thru Jul 15/12), so be smart with your design... avoid high tooling or set up costs! Cash prizes and awards are given for each Tier independently, and each Tier has its own brief: THE TIER 1 BRIEF > Open February 1st thru 29th, 2012 T1 - The iconic napkin sketch | Book a retreat, eat lots of broccoli, wear nothing but purple for a week – whatever gets your creative juices flowing. Tier 1 of the FREEform competition requires nothing more than your best idea for a new product. Conceive of an object intended for production – anything you want – no clients, no opinions (other than your own). “Innovation” is not a requirement – but won’t hurt your chances of winning. What we mean by that is if your idea is purely visual – like a new style or material applied to an existing product type (like a chair), that’s cool too. Whether it's a travel accessory, sporting good or anything in between, sketch a product that you think is a winner and you’ll be eligible for the Tier 1 cash and prizes. 1) Your product sketch should be presented as a fully resolved product with an estimated retail price greater than $99. 2) Be sure your submission doesn’t rely on electronics or complex mechanical systems to provide functionality. 3) Lastly, make sure that your product can be effectively produced using one or more of the following production methods: metal forming, CNC lathing, CNC milling, thermoforming, woodworking, die-cutting, injection molding, or laser cutting. In addition to these methods, objects can be assembled after production with processes like sewing, gluing or fastening. (see products on ideacious.com as examples, or for inspiration) NOTE: Submissions require a 300 word description of the product idea. NOTE: You can choose to keep your submission private. THE TIER 2 BRIEF > Open March 1st, thru April 15th, 2012 T2 - The defined product | Tier 2 of the FREEform competition requires a finished design of a new product submitted to the ideacious process. Design a finished object ready for production – anything you want – no clients, no opinions (other than your own). You may develop your submission from Tier 1 if you’d like, but it’s not necessary – you can submit something completely new if you like. “Innovation” is not a requirement – but won’t hurt your chances of winning. What we mean by that is if your product is purely visual – like a new style or material applied to an existing product type (like a chair), that’s cool too. Whether it's a travel accessory, sporting good or anything in between, design a product that you think is a winner and you’ll be eligible for the Tier 2 cash and prizes. Unlike any other traditional design contest - ALL submitted ideas in Tier 2 have the potential to go on to become a manufactured product. Here’s how: Tier 2 of the competition consists of a proper submission of a new product (CAD, renders, BOM) into ideacious.com (incl. the reimbursable $20 fee). Regardless of how your product does in the FREEform competition, it will remain on ideacious.com as a product concept that once enough units are presold, will go into production. See how ideacious works for more details. You have to do the design/engineering work yourself, or you can find someone (or company) to do it for you (see submit a design for more details on how to get your product ready for ideacious). For Tier 2 of the FREEform competition you will need to submit the following to qualify for any of the prizes: - A product concept with a retail sales price greater than $99 - A name for your product - 150 word statement detailing materials, manufacturing processes, function, and target audience - 3 to 5 photographs or photo realistic renderings of your awesome design* - 2 photographs, illustrations or photo realistic renderings showing construction and functionality* - 3D CAD files of assembly and individual parts, as well as production drawings *All submitted images are to be sized at 614 x 383 pixels, at 150 dpi. NOTE: The product submitted for the 2nd Tier DOES NOT have to be the same product that was submitted for Tier 1 / Tier 1 participation is NOT a requirement. NOTE: Your submission must comply with ideacious' 'Term of Use' agreement, and any additional agreement specific to the FREEform Competition. THE TIER 3 BRIEF > Open May 15th, thru Aug 15th, 2012 T3 - The preorder goal | Tier 3 is only open to participants of Tier 2 of the FREEform competition. Tier 3 of the competition is the preselling stage. All submissions from Tier 2 are given a minimum of 12 weeks in Tier 3 to achieve their minimum goal of 500 units presold.** Market your submission. Get as many people or companies to preorder your product as quickly as possible. Be as innovative about how you promote as you did to create your idea in the first place. Presell your 500 units** fast, using social media, and your best marketing ingenuity. Of the submissions that receive this milestone, one will be selected winner. The winner will be selected based on the following: - Speed of achieving preorder goal - Social media activity & effectiveness - Securing corporate brand support (not required) - Marketing ingenuity IF no submission achieves this goal in the 12 weeks given, the first submission to achieve their presales goal will win the Tier 3 Award. NOTE: Your submission must comply with ideacious' 'Term of Use' agreement, and any additional agreement specific to the 20k Competition. The Tiers are split up in terms of awards and prizes so that more people can win something, but one person (or team) could still win it all. ** Your product will have to presell a minimum of 500 units to win Tier 3. If your product requires more units sold to amortize any tooling or set up costs, your presale goal will be higher than some of the other competition participants. ideacious will identify what your product’s presale goal is before Tier 3 begins. Even if your product requires more than 500 presales, you still have to presell the full amount in the set amount of time (Apr 15/12 thru Jul 15/12), so be smart with your design... avoid high tooling or set up costs! Contest FAQs > TIER 1 Q: The competition brief specifies a minimum price point of $99. Is there a limit to how much over I can go? A: There is no limit to how high you can price your product, but you should take into consideration your target market and have reasonable expectations for what retail price people will be willing to pay. This is particularly applicable if you wish to take your idea forward to Tiers 2 & 3. Q: How much detail do I need to go into for my Tier 1 submission in terms of materials and manufacturing? A: The focus on this stage is on your idea. However, your submission does need to reflect a basic understanding of how your product idea would be manufactured. This is especially important if you would like to take this idea ahead to Tiers 2 & 3. Q: If I choose to make my Tier 1 submission public, where would it be displayed? A: Once the results for Tier 1 are announced, your submission may be showcased on one or more of the following: - FREEform website - FREEform advertisements - ideacious website - ideacious media stream (Twitter, Facebook, Blog & Newsletter) For obvious reasons, once your submission has been posted on the web we cannot determine what other websites or blogs may choose to pick it up. TIER 2 Q: Do I need to have participated in Tier 1 to enter Tier 2 of the competition? A: Absolutely not, we would like Tier 2 to be open to as many creators as possible. After all, our goal is to help as many people as possible realize there ideas. Q: Does my Tier 1 submission carry forward to Tier 2 of the competition? A: No. Only winning submissions from Tier 1 will be automatically entered in Tier 2 of the competition. You’re welcome to take your Tier 1 idea forward to a more resolved state and re-submit it to Tier 2, but you’re also free to submit any other product idea (as long as it fits the brief!). Q: What if my Tier 2 submission proves to be impossible to manufacture due to technical issues or lack of cost-effectiveness? A: We hope to see all of our Tier 2 submissions make it to the ideacious site for the preorder stage. However, if there are unresolvable issues with the manufacturability of your product, you will be refunded your $20 submission fee and no longer be eligible for any of the Tier 2 prizes. Q: Is there room for further development of my product once I have made the Tier 2 submission? A: Absolutely, it is not often that creators get their product designs ready to produce the first time around. We treat Tier 2 submissions as we do any standard ideacious product submission (with the obvious difference that you could end up winning up to $20k!). You can update and add to your design for as long as the competition is running, and are welcome to take advantage of our full service network that encompasses everything from design engineering to prototyping, and more. Q: Is there a specific format for the CAD files and production drawings that need to be submitted for Tier 2? A: No, we are not limiting the format in which you submit your CAD & production drawings. We do, however, recommend STEP or IGS for CAD files, and PDF or DWG for production drawings, as they are the most widely accepted formats. Note that you may be requested to submit a different format or updated CAD/drawings based on feedback we receive from potential manufacturers of your product. TIER 3 Q: My Tier 2 submission definitely won’t need 500 presales to fund its production. Why do I still need to presell so many? A: The minimum presale goal is intended to level the playing field. If your product has a very low setup cost (laser cutting, for example) and only requires 5 preorders you are at a significant advantage to other submissions that require more funding (an injection molded part, for example) that may require 1000. If you plan ahead appropriately from Tier 2 (or even Tier 1, for that matter!) you can really tailor your submission to work well within the constraints of a minimum price point of $99 and a minimum preorder goal of 500. This is the most exciting part of FREEform—never before has there been quite so much room for strategic planning in a design competition! Q: What happens if I fail to make the minimum preorder goal of 500 within the allotted time? A: In the case that NONE of the Tier 3 submissions make the presales goal within 12 weeks, the competition becomes a race to the finish line - the first to 500 presales. If you’re not a lucky winner, this does not mean that your product will be taken off the site. Keep promoting your product and see it through to production. Q: Are there any limitations to how I can promote my Tier 3 submission? A: There are no specific limitations set on how you choose to promote your work and achieve your presales goal. Note, however, that the winner will be selected on a number of factors including: - Speed of achieving preorder goal - Social media activity & effectiveness - Securing corporate brand support - Marketing ingenuity This means that throwing a wad of money into a full blown advertising campaign is not really your best way to win—what we are looking for in our grand prize winner is initiative and ingenuity in achieving the necessary presales. |
The Prizes > EARLY SUBMISSION PRIZES: - Penny Hockey set ($5 value) - Foreword Shelf ($24 value) - Jet Set ($39 value) - Magpins ($6 value) - 4 cities coasters ($39 value) - Emergency Games ($35 value) TIER 1 PRIZES: - $500 ideacious cash prize - Three (3) free Tier 2 submissions ($60 value) - Two (2) $25 ideacious giftcards ($50 value) TIER 2 PRIZES: - $2000 ideacious cash prize - Provisional Patent Application ($1000 maximum value) - $50 ideacious giftcard ($50 value) - Two (2) $25 ideacious giftcards ($50 value) - One (1) one-year ideacious Titanium Membership ($5000 value) TIER 3 PRIZE: - $15,000 ideacious cash prize More Schedule > TIER 1 – Feb 1 thru 29, 2012 TIER 2 - Mar 1 thru Apr 15, 2024 TIER 3 - May 15 thru Aug 15, 2023 |
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